Means for lubricating car wheels and rails



Dec. 19, 1933.

M; c.' BOLT MEANS FOR LUBRICATING GAR WHEELS AND RAILS Filed June- 10, 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet l Dec. 19, 1933. M. c. BOLT 1,940,527

MEANS FOR LUBRICATING CAR WHEELS AND RAILS Filed June 10, 1930 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 gwuv/Moz Dec. 19, 1933. M. c. BOLT MEANS FOR LUBRICATING CAR WHEELS AND RAILS Filed June 10, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 lNVE/VTUR A TTORNE Yd Patented Dec. 19, 1933 UNITED STATES MEANS FOR LUBRICATINGY can WHEELS AND RAILS Malon Bolt, East Radiordg'va assignor'to The American Valve and Meter Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application June 1930. Serial No. 460,271 iilclaims. (o1. 184-3) The present invention relates to lubricating devices and more particularly to a lubricating device adapted for use in lubricating rolling stock wheeisand rails and is an improvement over 6' my pending application filed April 18th, 1929,

Ser. No. 356,153 for Means for lubricating car wheels and rails.

An object of this invention is to provide an attachment which may be readily mounted on 10 a rail without in any way altering the structure of the rail as by bending or cutting out a portion thereof and without weakening the present rail structure by cutting holes-or the like in the rail. 7

Another object of this invention is to pro vide a lubricating device which is adapted to lubricate the flanges of therwheels together with the ball of the rail,- the lubricating operation takingplace as the wheel moves over the rail.

A further object of this invention is to provide a lubricating device which is so constructed that it will not readily get out of order or become clogged by dirt or cinders.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a lubricating attachment which may be adjustably secured to the rail structure, the attachment including a plurality of lubricating nozzles which may be adjustably positioned on one side of the rail, the nozzles being mounted so as to benormally out of engagement with the flange but at the same: time beingyieldably mounted so that they :will not be injured by a wheel flange which is relatively'large due to excessive wear or the like. l r The above and various other objects and advantages of this invention will in part be ,de-- scribed in'andin part be'understood from the following detailed description of the present preferredembodiment, the same being illustrated inthe accompanying drawings wherein:--

Figure 1 is a detail side elevation of a device constructed according to the preferred embodi ment of this invention mounted on arail'shown in fragmentary form; and

Figure 2 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Figure 1. t Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the device.show ing the mechanism as supplying lubricant from a lubricant tank.

- Referring to the drawings wherein like numerals of reference designate corresponding parts throughout the several views; the numeral 10 designates a rail of conventional? character H over which a wheel 11 havinga'flange 12 is adapted to rotate. The raillO comprises a base flange 13, a ball or upper end portion 14 and an intermediate web or supporting member 15, In order to lubricate the inside face of the ball i the rail I-have provided an elor'i gatedttubular reservoir 16 which may be of any desired length andis of a size to readily be p0: sitioned between the outstanding portion of the ball 14 and the base flange 1 3.

An elongated spacing member 1'7 is adapted" at one face thereof to engage against theweb or vertically disposed portion 15 of the rail and at the opposite face engages against the reservoir 16 so as to hold the reservoir 16 in spaced relation or away from the vertically disposed flange 15 of the rail. The spacing member .17 is provided with an elongatedconcave recess 18 in which the reservoir 16 is adapted to be seated."

A clamping membergenerally designated as 19 is adapted to engage at one end against one side of the rail andat the opposite end is adapted to engage against the elongated lubricating res-- ervoir 16 so asto hold the reservoir in fixed adjusted position upon the rail. The clamping member 16 comprises a relatively short'member 20 which is provided at one end thereof with a loop 21, the loop 21 being adapted to engage about the marginal edge portion of the base flange 1301 the rail and the other half of the clamp 19 extends outwardly of the base flange and upwardly in substantially parallelrelation to the vertically disposed-flange 15 of the rail, r

the upper end of the elongated clamp member 22 being provided with a curved portion 23 which is adapted to engage about the periphery of f the 9d reservoir 16. The clamping member 19 may, if desired, be connected to thelubricating mechanism disclosed in my" pending application, Serial Number 356,153 so that when the car moves over the rail the weight of the car will rock the pi'essureine'chanisin shown in this prior application for forcing the lubricant from'a re-'- motely' positioned reservoir into the reservoir 16 mounted along the side of the rail.

However, a connecting pipe or conduit 24 may be connected atone end to a. suitable source of lubricant supply, the conduit2 l being connected to suitable branches 25 which are connected to the'reservoir 16 at spaced points therealong so as to assure an adequate supply of oil or other i.

lubricant being maintained in the reservoir at all times;

-A plurality of lubricating nozzles generally designated as 26 are yieldably mounted in the elongated reservoir 16, the nozzles 26 being an r nular in cross section and having a tapering and delivery conduits 80.

flaring upper end portion 27 which is angularly inclined from. the body, being inclined inwardly and upwardly toward the inner face of the ball. The inner upper portion of the nozzle 26 is flared and relatively flat, and is adapted to slidably engage against the. ball 14 of the rail.

The reservoir 16 is provided with a plurality-of threaded sleeves 28 which, if desired, may be adjustably positioned in the reservoir 16 and a packing gland 29 is threadably mounted in the sleeve 28 and engages about the periphery of the nozzle member 26. The sleeve member 28 is preferably provided with a seat 30 upon which a packing member 31 is adapted to be mounted, the packing member 31 being positioned about the nozzle and engaging against the lower end of the gland 29 so as to provide an'oil tight and at the same time a slidable joint; The nozzle member 26 is preferably hollow and open at the lower end and is provided with an enlarged bore 32.

An expansible spring 33 is mounted within the reservoir lfi and is adapted to engage at one end against the reservoir 16 andthe opposite end is seated in the bore 32 so as to 'constantlyurge' the nozzle member upwardly. A cotter pin 34 extends through the nozzle 26 adjacent thelower end thereof and is adapted to limit the movement of the nozzle in the reservoir. It will be obvious that any desired number of nozzles 26 may be mounted along the reservoir 16 and that they may be mounted in any desired spaced relation to each other so as to properly lubricate the car wheel.

If desired, the reservoir 16 may be. provided with'a plug or closure member 35- at eachend thereof, the plug 35 being threadably mounted in the reservoir so as to permit removal thereof for cleaning the reservoir.

In the operation of this device, the nozzles 26 are adjusted so that they will be normally out of contact with the wheel flange 12 but may be moved downwardly by contact with flanges on worn wheels. As hereinbefore stated, the reservoir 16 may be fed by or connected to a suitable supply tank which may be provided with suitable pump means so as to force the oil out of the nozzles upon the passageof the train over the rail as set forth in my prior application above identified. V V f In combination withapparatus of the character just described, I may employ an oil delivery mechanism comprising a tank 84, a pump 85, and operating means for the pump, generally designated at 86. The pump is at present shown as a simple displacement cylinder, the intake and exhaust check valves of which, i ndicated at 87 and 88,.are spring seated and included in the connection 89 of the pump with the tank and inthe connection 90 with the oil Conduits '80 should include a flexible section, as this tank is intended to be imbedded in the ground, and the pump casing should be enclosed within a housing 91, having a removable cap 92 for the same reason.

The operating mechanism may be of any suitable character for operation of the pump by the movement of the rails resulting from a train passing over the track. I, however, prefer the construction herein illustrated which included bracket elements 93 rigid to the pump and secured to the ties, as at 94. Upon the bracket elements 93 I mount standards 95 and 96, at the upper ends of which "are pivoted. levers 97 and 98. The adjacent ends Ofl these levers overlap one another and are provided with a series of longitudinal spaced openings 99 for the passage of a pivot bolt 100.

The connection with lever 97 to its standard permits longitudinal shifting movement of the lever, the pivot forthe lever projecting through a slot 101 formed therein. The outer end of this lever 97 is connected to link 102 and thus to the pump piston 103. The outer end'of lever 98 is forked to receive a horizontal flange 20 formed upon one element of a clamping bracket 21 adapted to clampingly engage the base of the rail.

One arm of the fork has directed therethrough a set screw l06engaging one face of this flange, thus forcing a fulcrum 107 formed on the opposite arm into engagement with the opposite face of the flange.

It is, of course, understood that various changes and modifications may be made in the details of construction and design of the above specifically described embodiment of the inventionwithout departing from the spirit thereof, such changes and modifications being restricted only by the scope ofthe following claims."

What is claimed is: 1

1. In a track oiling device, an elongated reservoir, clamping means engaging said rail andsaid reservoir whereby to mount said reservoir upon the rail, a spacing member interposed between the reservoir and the rail web whereby to position the reservoir at a point spaced outwardly from the, rail web, a pluralityxof upstanding spring pressed nozzles adjustably mounted on said reservoir; said nozzles having an inclined upper end portion and a jet opening whereby to eject oil on one face of the wheel flange, means for limit ing the movement. of the nozzles in the reservoir, and means for connecting said reservoir to a source of lubricant supply.

'2. A rail lubricating device comprising a nozzle member arranged to direct a lubricant under pressure in the general direction of the throat of a flanged car wheel when in position upon a rail head, means for mounting the nozzle member yieldingly and closely alongside the rail head at an elevation such that the flanges of normal car wheels remove the lubricant from the nozzle member without actually striking the nozzle,

member whereas the flanges of worn wheels may gently strike and yieldingly move the nozzle members, and means for effecting communication of the nozzle with a suitable source of lubricant under pressure.

3. A rail lubricating device comprising a reservoir mounted stationarily relative to a rail head, a hollow nozzle'memberfor directing a lubricant'under pressure in the general direction of the throat of a flanged car wheel when in posi ingly holding the nozzle members in position alongside the head of a rail at a given elevation, the elevation being such that normal car wheel members having jet ends and means for yieldflanges clear the nozzle. members when passing over them, means for effecting communication of lubricant under pressure to the jet ends of the nozzles whence the lubricant is removed by the passing wheel flanges, the yielding mountings of the nozzle members serving to preclude fracture thereof when struck by the deep flanges of worn car wheels.

5. In a rail lubricating device the combination of replaceable normally stationary nozzle members having jet ends for directing lubricant upwardly adjacent to the side of a rail head, a reservoir common to all the nozzle members, means for mounting the reservoir stationarily relative to the rail and at that side of the rail occupied by the nozzle members, means for replaceably mounting the nozzle members directly upon the reservoir in fluid communication therewith, and means for effecting communication of lubricant under pressure to the reservoir and nozzle members.

6. The combination with a section of rail, a tank of lubricant and pump means operable by movement of a vehicle having flanged wheels, along a track or rail, for dispensing lubricant from said tank, of a closed reservoir disposed at that side of the rail along which the vehicle flanges move, a valved connection between the tank and reservoir for directing to the reser-' voir, the lubricant dispensed from the tank, and a nozzle having a depressible mounting on the reservoir and communicating with the reservoir, said nozzle having an opening at its upper end, said upper end being normally disposed at the side of the rail head immediately beneath the path of normal wheel flanges thereover, whereby lubricant ejected from said reservoir and nozzle will be picked up by a passing wheel flange, the depressible mounting of the nozzle permitting the nozzle to move away from wheel flanges that project below the path of normal wheel flanges.

7. Track lubricating apparatus comprising rails, one of which is movable vertically under the load of moving stock moving along said rails, a tank of lubricant, a lubricant pump, a lubricant reservoir along therail, a conduit connecting the tank, 'thepump and the reservoir, means inthe conduit for effecting unidirectional flow of lubricant from the tank to the reservoir by reason of operation of the pump, means connected with the pump and the vertically movable rail for operating the pump and a plurality of hollow nozzles having openings at one end thereof in communication with the reservoir and being slidably and yieldingly supported on said reservoir at intervals along the reservoir, the upper ends of the nozzles being tapered and flared to permit entry of said upper ends of the nozzles between a wheel flange and the rails, the nozzles having a discharge port at their upper portions communicating with the interior thereof, the upper ends of the nozzles being positioned immediatelyadjacent the rail head and having tween the head and flange thereof, means for periodically supplying lubricant thereto, a distributing nozzle comprising a tapered portion adapted to lie alongside the rail head with the a tapered face thereof so positioned that lubricant thereon will engage the outer surface of a wheel flange to distribute the oil on the wheel flange,

there being an oil conduit formed in said nozzle, the outlet of the conduit being in the outer face of the tapered nozzle portion adjacent the path of wheel flanges along the rail and adjacent the crown of the rail head, and means for yieldingly' mounting the nozzle upon the reservoir and in communication wtih the reservoir, said mounting means limiting upward movement of the nozzle and adapted to permit movement of the nozzle away from flanges projecting below the normal path of the flanges along the rail head. 1

'9. In a track and wheel flange oiling system including a tank of lubricant and a pump operable by the movement of the rolling stock along the track for dispensing lubricant from the tank, the combination of an elongated reservoir mounted fixedly along the rail between the head or ball and flange thereof, a valved connection to the pump whereby lubricant may be supplied to the reservoir from the tank, a plurality of threaded sleeves mounted at intervals along thereservoir and having threaded connection in bores provided in the reservoir and adjustable by means of said threaded connections to positions intermediate the rail flange and rail head, a nozzle member extending through each sleeve and having a sliding flt in the sleeve whereby the nozzle may be reciprocated ,inthe sleeve, means at the lower end of each nozzle for limiting movement of the nozzle outwardly from its sleeve, means yieldingly urging the nozzle in an outward direction in relation to the sleeve,

each nozzle having atv its upper end a face flared and angularly inclined, said face being inclined inwardly and upwardly toward the inner face of the ball or head of the rail, the flared end of each nozzle extending along the rail head and adapted to slidably engage thereagainst for preeluding rotation of the nozzle, and each nozzle having an elongated transversely disposed discharge port at the upper end of the said inclined face and from which port lubricant may be ejected, the said inclined face being positioned along the normal path of, wheel flanges of wheels passing along the rail head whereby lubricant discharged from the discharge port upon the inclined face of a nozzle is applied to the wheel flange, the nozzles being adapted to recede, against the action of the yielding means upon contact of wheel flanges upon the nozzles.

10. In a rail and wheel lubricating device the combination with a rail, a supply of lubricant and pump means operable incident to movement of a wheel along the rail, of a nozzle having a discharge port at its upper edge, and means for directing lubricant from the pump to the nozzle and including a mounting for yieldingly positioning the nozzle at a rail contiguous to the path of a wheel along the rail whereby lubricant leaving the discharge port will be interposed in the path of a wheel and the nozzle may recede when contacted by a wheel, without affecting operation of the pump means.

' -MALON'C. BOLT. 

